Highest ROI Degrees
Best return on tuition investment. Score column shows Base Case (range = Pessimistic–Optimistic).
| Program | Score | Earnings | AI Risk | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marine Transportation United States Merchant Marine Academy | 72 70–72 | $69,847 | Low | 266.2x |
| Business Administration Haskell Indian Nations University | 74 68–76 | $25,941 | High | 180.7x |
| Dental Support Services Foothill College | 82 78–82 | $81,255 | Moderate | 128.8x |
| Registered Nursing & Nursing Administration College of Central Florida | 90 84–91 | $78,006 | High | 102.5x |
| Ethnic & Cultural Minority Haskell Indian Nations University | 47 40–51 | $23,887 | Very High | 98.5x |
| Electrical Engineering Technologies Valencia College | 70 66–72 | $64,538 | High | 85.2x |
| Computer and Information Sciences, General University of Florida-Online | 91 82–93 | $90,651 | Very High | 81.6x |
| Allied Health Diagnostic Valencia College | 83 79–84 | $68,564 | Moderate | 81.3x |
| Computer Science Brigham Young University-Idaho | 89 79–91 | $77,316 | Very High | 65.4x |
| Computer/Information Technology Administration Palm Beach State College | 84 75–87 | $51,368 | Very High | 61.9x |
Most AI-Resistant Degrees
Lowest AI automation exposure among programs earning $40K+. These fields are hardest for AI to disrupt.
| Program | Score | Earnings | AI Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies Ferris State University | 71 72–69 | $65,331 | Low |
| Building/Construction Finishing Rowan University | 89 89–86 | $85,630 | Low |
| Liberal Arts and Sciences Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 58 60–57 | $103,135 | Low |
| Marine Transportation California State University Maritime Academy | 74 73–75 | $87,464 | Low |
| Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach | 71 71–71 | $81,436 | Low |
| Vehicle Maintenance and Repair Technologies Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide | 86 86–84 | $81,436 | Low |
| Fishing and Fisheries Sciences and Management University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point | 56 57–55 | $42,297 | Low |
| Funeral Service and Mortuary Science University of Minnesota-Twin Cities | 60 62–57 | $60,367 | Low |
| Culinary Arts and Related Services Culinary Institute of America | 67 66–66 | $43,808 | Low |
| Agricultural Mechanization California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo | 73 72–72 | $73,053 | Moderate |
Highest AI Disruption Risk
Programs whose career paths have the highest exposure to large language models and AI tools.
| Program | Score | Earnings | AI Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnic & Cultural Minority Columbia University in the City of New York | 41 34–45 | $55,206 | Very High |
| Literature Pace University | 26 18–32 | $25,758 | Very High |
| Philosophy University of Pennsylvania | 48 41–50 | $73,053 | Very High |
| Mathematics and Statistics, Other Dartmouth College | 55 46–57 | $102,938 | Very High |
| Management Information Systems and Services Santa Clara University | 57 47–59 | $93,042 | Very High |
| Communication & Journalism Wisconsin Lutheran College | 42 35–45 | $44,511 | Very High |
| Computer Programming DigiPen Institute of Technology | 69 59–72 | $102,580 | Very High |
| Business Operations Support Bellevue University | 82 76–86 | $66,401 | Very High |
| Statistics Harvard University | 60 50–64 | $141,116 | Very High |
| Publishing Susquehanna University | 21 15–25 | $17,585 | Very High |
How DegreeWorth Scores Work
Real Earnings Data
Actual graduate salaries from the U.S. Department of Education, not self-reported surveys.
AI Risk Analysis
Every career path rated for AI exposure using peer-reviewed research on task automation.
3 Scenarios
Optimistic, Base Case, and Pessimistic projections for how AI reshapes each field over 10 years.
0–100 Score
A single number combining earnings, ROI, job market size, and AI resilience into one comparable metric.